Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 27, 2026
Application No. 18/524,158

SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR CONSUMER NETWORK SLICE SELECTION

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Nov 30, 2023
Examiner
DUONG, DUC T
Art Unit
2467
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Verizon Communications Inc.
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
90%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
92%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 90% — above average
90%
Career Allowance Rate
696 granted / 778 resolved
+31.5% vs TC avg
Minimal +2% lift
Without
With
+2.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 10m
Avg Prosecution
15 currently pending
Career history
802
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
7.8%
-32.2% vs TC avg
§103
35.4%
-4.6% vs TC avg
§102
34.2%
-5.8% vs TC avg
§112
12.7%
-27.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 778 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Response to Amendment The indicated allowability of claims 7 and 8 are withdrawn in view of the newly discovered reference(s) to Izhaki et al (US Publication 2025/0016627 A1) and Bordeleau et al (US Publication 2020/0275359 A1). Rejections based on the newly cited reference(s) follow. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. Claims 1-3, 5, and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kolan (US Publication 2025/0024315 A1) in view of Izhaki et al (US Publication 2025/0016627 A1). Regarding to claim 1, Kolan discloses a system 700/800 (fig. 7-8) comprising: at least one network device 200 (fig. 2 page 4 paragraph 0052) including one or more processors 210 (page 4 paragraph 0053) configured to: receive (fig. 7), from a user device 508, a slice selection 502 to associate an application 506 on the user device with a network slice (page 8 paragraph 0091); generate, after the receiving, a slice recommendation for the application to switch (migrate) to a different network slice (slice B) based on at least one of device parameters or network parameters (fig. 8 page 9 paragraph 0096); and provide, to the user device, the slice recommendation for presentation to a user (page 17 paragraph 0184). Kola fails to teach for wherein generating the slice recommendation further includes at least one of: generating the slice recommendation based on a content type indicated in a packet header, or generating the slice recommendation based on predicted network conditions. However, Izhaki discloses a slice orchestration system 700 (fig. 7) for generating slice recommendation based on predicted network conditions (page 19 paragraph 0140). Thus, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to arrange for the slice recommendation as taught by Izhaki into Kolan’s system to provide an on-demand approval or rejection of a requested network slice at a device associated with service management of a wireless network. Regarding to claim 2, Kolan discloses providing, to the user via the user device, a slice selection menu, and receiving user input via the slice selection menu (page 17 paragraph 0184). Regarding to claim 3, Kolan discloses the slice selection menu includes options for the user to associate a network slice descriptor with individual applications on the user device (page 3 paragraph 0042). Regarding to claim 5, Kolan discloses receiving an application ID for the application (pages 9-10 paragraph 0103). Regarding to claim 9, Kolan discloses generating, by one or more network devices, a different slice recommendation (page 9 paragraph 0096); and providing, by the one or more network devices and to the user device, the different slice recommendation for presentation to the user (page 17 paragraph 0184). Claims 1-3, 5, and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kolan (US Publication 2025/0024315 A1) in view of Bordeleau et al (US Publication 2020/0275359 A1). Regarding to claim 1, Kolan discloses a system 700/800 (fig. 7-8) comprising: at least one network device 200 (fig. 2 page 4 paragraph 0052) including one or more processors 210 (page 4 paragraph 0053) configured to: receive (fig. 7), from a user device 508, a slice selection 502 to associate an application 506 on the user device with a network slice (page 8 paragraph 0091); generate, after the receiving, a slice recommendation for the application to switch (migrate) to a different network slice (slice B) based on at least one of device parameters or network parameters (fig. 8 page 9 paragraph 0096); and provide, to the user device, the slice recommendation for presentation to a user (page 17 paragraph 0184). Kola fails to teach for wherein generating the slice recommendation further includes at least one of: generating the slice recommendation based on a content type indicated in a packet header, or generating the slice recommendation based on predicted network conditions. However, Bordeleau discloses a network slice selector 510 (fig. 5) for generating slice recommendation based on a content type indicated in a packet header (page 7 paragraphs 0063 and 0066). Thus, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to arrange for the slice recommendation as taught by Bordeleau into Kolan’s system to slices network based on application-specific and/or device-specific that’s configured to meet latency, bandwidth, jitter, or other requirements of different applications or device types. Regarding to claim 2, Kolan discloses providing, to the user via the user device, a slice selection menu, and receiving user input via the slice selection menu (page 17 paragraph 0184). Regarding to claim 3, Kolan discloses the slice selection menu includes options for the user to associate a network slice descriptor with individual applications on the user device (page 3 paragraph 0042). Regarding to claim 5, Kolan discloses receiving an application ID for the application (pages 9-10 paragraph 0103). Regarding to claim 9, Kolan discloses generating, by one or more network devices, a different slice recommendation (page 9 paragraph 0096); and providing, by the one or more network devices and to the user device, the different slice recommendation for presentation to the user (page 17 paragraph 0184). Claim 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kola in view of Izhaki and Yang (US Publication 2023/0354172 A1). Regarding to claim 6, Kolan and Izhaki combined disclose all the limitations with respect to claim 1, except for the slice recommendation based on a location of the UE device. However, Yang discloses a network device 101 (fig. 10) generating a slice recommendation based on a location of a UE device (page 5 paragraph 0066). Thus, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to arrange for the slice recommendation as taught by Yang into the combination of Kolan and Izhaki's system to better select network that can improve the user experience. Allowable Subject Matter Claim 4 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Claims 10-12 and 14-23 are allowed. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Duc T Duong whose telephone number is (571)272-3122. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri; 9am-6pm. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Hassan Phillips can be reached at (571)272-3940. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /DUC T DUONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2467
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 30, 2023
Application Filed
Feb 26, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103
May 14, 2026
Response Filed
Jul 23, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §103
Sep 14, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Sep 28, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
90%
Grant Probability
92%
With Interview (+2.1%)
2y 10m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 778 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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